A COLLABORATIVE POST
WRITTEN BY BOOM BOX POST
Recently we published a blog that listed classic cartoon sound effects and the emotion they convey to the audience. In that post we outlined the toony sounds we associate with happiness, anger, sadness, and humor. Our hope was that this list would help those stuck in their sound editorial from having to sift through their entire sound library looking for the perfect sound. You can read that post here!
In this post, we are outlining the following: Scared, Disgust, Love, and Bored. Check out how our editors would approach these emotions with classic cartoon sound effects!
Scared
Maraca Shake
Bone Rattle
Ahooga!
“When I hear a toony Ahooga! car horn, I always picture that classic cartoon moment where the character’s eyes bug out of their skull in fear. I love it and I think it’s a really funny way to convey panic/fear.” - Tess
“My favorite toony sound effect that conveys fear is the classic Hanna-Barbera teeth rattling sound! You may remember this iconic sound effect from Scooby-Doo (and many others). It works great when a character is physically shaking. If you don’t have access to the Hanna-Barbera library, you can mimic the same kind of sound with maracas, shakers, or clattering of any kind!” - Katie
Disgust
Bork
Gulp
Fog horn
Fly Buzz
“There's something really gross about any kind of bodily sound to me, and a classic gulp can convey disgust I think. I would use it if a character is trying to keep their lunch down after seeing something really gross. This can be paired with a stomach gurgle for a really disgusted sounding effects build.” - Katie
“I love a bork. It’s such a strange and unique sound and perfectly describes a good gross out moment. It sounds somewhat like a fart and to me is the epitome of a frown - can’t you just hear someone's face sinking in disgust when you hear it?” - Tess
Love
Bell Tree Gliss
Kiss/Smooch
Bubbles
“A gliss (glissando) of bells just sounds magical and happy, so it’s perfect for depicting love!” - Tess
“I love using a kiss and adding a pop sound effect at the end for when a character loves something/someone and kisses it! It's so cute,. You can even use some sparkly chimes with the pop. I think it just adds a little more love to an already loving action!” - Katie
Bored
Clock tick
Crickets
Timer
“I think any kind of rhythmic loop works really well to convey boredom, but an egg timer ticking is the best option in my opinion! You can slow it down to show that a character is really bored and time is crawling by.” - Katie
“The awkward silence of crickets is a classic trope. You can’t get around the fact that crickets are a funny way to explain that an audience is bored. I also always love a stray cough when an audience is silent, but crickets are the classic go-to.” - Tess
If you enjoyed this blog, check out these:
BOOM BOX'S FAVORITE CARTOON SOUND EFFECTS
A CRASH COURSE IN TOON SOUND DESIGN